Dr. Richard Scolyer, an Australian pathologist and co-director of Melanoma Institute Australia, was diagnosed with glioblastoma鈥攁 highly aggressive and usually terminal brain cancer. He was given less than a year to live.
Instead of conventional therapy, he collaborated with his colleague Prof. Georgina Long to create a first-of-its-kind treatment plan involving:
Combination immunotherapy before surgery (neoadjuvant),
A personalized cancer vaccine tailored to his tumor鈥檚 genetic profile.
These approaches were adapted from their successful melanoma immunotherapy research.
Outcome:
Over a year after diagnosis, Scolyer remains cancer-free.
His case is being closely studied as a potential game-changer in brain cancer treatment, especially for glioblastoma, which usually has a 5% five-year survival rate.
Caveats:
The treatment caused serious side effects (seizures, brain swelling).
It's a single case; long-term remission or cure is not confirmed yet.
Clinical trials are likely to follow this model soon.
Dr. Richard Scolyer, an Australian pathologist and co-director of Melanoma Institute Australia, was diagnosed with glioblastoma鈥攁 highly aggressive and usually terminal brain cancer. He was given less than a year to live.
Instead of conventional therapy, he collaborated with his colleague Prof. Georgina Long to create a first-of-its-kind treatment plan involving:
Combination immunotherapy before surgery (neoadjuvant),
A personalized cancer vaccine tailored to his tumor鈥檚 genetic profile.
These approaches were adapted from their successful melanoma immunotherapy research.
Outcome:
Over a year after diagnosis, Scolyer remains cancer-free.
His case is being closely studied as a potential game-changer in brain cancer treatment, especially for glioblastoma, which usually has a 5% five-year survival rate.
Caveats:
The treatment caused serious side effects (seizures, brain swelling).
It's a single case; long-term remission or cure is not confirmed yet.
Clinical trials are likely to follow this model soon.
